Summary
- Akasa Air could begin international flights to the Middle East in the following 3-4 months.
- The airline is awaiting permission from relevant authorities to start out these services.
- Akasa Air can also be considering medium-haul international flights to destinations equivalent to Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and the Maldives.
Gone are the times when recent Indian airlines had to attend several years to be eligible for international flights. Recent changes in rules have made it lots easier for carriers to spread their wings to overseas markets, and a first-rate example of that’s Akasa Air. The low-cost airline is barely a 12 months old and is already planning flights to the Middle East in the following few months.
International flights in 3-4 months
In its relatively short lifespan, Akasa Air has said on a couple of occasion that it desires to fly internationally soon. With 20 aircraft in its fleet, the airline has fulfilled the regulatory obligation for the minimum aircraft requirement to start out overseas flights and is now busy getting other approvals before starting these services.
Photo: Wirestock Creators | Shutterstock
While it is going to miss its initial estimate of the tip of 2023 to start out these flights, Akasa’s CEO Vinay Dube told CNBC-TV18 that flights to Doha, Kuwait, Riyadh, and Jeddah are expected to start in the following two to a few months. He said,
And the Middle East isn’t the one region on Akasa’s list of potential destinations. Given the range of its Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, the airline can comfortably include several medium-haul international flights, with Dube mentioning that destinations equivalent to Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and the Maldives are also being considered.
Triple-digit plane order soon
For quite a while now, Akasa has hinted at a major aircraft order for its future growth and fleet development. Akasa currently has 20 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft from its initial order of 72 planes. Dube had previously said that Akasa would place a major aircraft order, much larger than the previous one, and has now said that it might be just weeks or months away.
Photo: Yatrik Sheth | Shutterstock
He told CNBC-TV-18 that Akasa’s recent triple-digit aircraft order might be finalized as soon as December, even though it may additionally be pushed into January. Regarding the present fleet size, he said that Akasa will add a number of more aircraft in the approaching months. He said,
Akasa Air Prepares For 3-Digit Aircraft Order & Eyes Stock Market Listing
Akasa Air is planning a large aircraft order to sustain its growth within the Indian market and eyes an IPO by the tip of the last decade.
Recovering from pilot issues
The airline bumped into trouble a number of months ago, with several of its pilots resigning and joining rival airlines. In a court battle, Akasa sued the departing pilots for monetary compensation and reputational damage for flight cancelations.
Photo: Akasa Air
Dube said that they’ve not had any pilot resignations since then and previously also mentioned that the airline expects to extend its pilot strength from 450 to 600 in the following few months.
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